Shattering Latynia's Obsession
"Ruphus, be honest with me."
"About what?"
I'm standing here alone with Ruphus right now.
I don't like being alone with a guy, but there's no helping it this time.
Ruphus stubbornly refused at first, insisting he needed to stay with Ara, but he followed me with a resigned look once he saw my serious expression.
The most important thing right now is whatever's going on with Latynia.
But before that, there's something I need to confirm first.
"You're Latynia's guard, right?"
"..."
Ruphus couldn't say a word.
I'd nailed it.
No matter how headstrong Latynia might be, she's still a princess of a nation—they wouldn't just send her off to Korea without any protection.
Ran away? No way that's possible.
Which means it's reasonable to assume Ruphus tagged along under the pretense of being her guard.
Prism's side has probably already been contacted and is handling things separately.
I became convinced of that during the incident at the training ground last time.
The guards showed up almost immediately after Latynia passed out.
And Ruphus chewed me out way too harshly.
Latynia herself never noticed, but she's been getting protected from the shadows all along.
"It's a secret from Lady Latynia."
"I figured you'd say that. That's why I told you in the first place."
"Sigh... So why ask?"
"I want to know about Latynia."
Ruphus's expression hardened.
He didn't open up easily.
He kept repeating himself, sticking to what he knew, or saying things that didn't add up...
It took quite a while to drill down to the core issue.
"So, the reason Latynia came to Korea was to solve that problem?"
"Yeah. Considering Lady Latynia's personality, we deliberately left a gap in her guard detail. The plan was already set: pretend it was a coincidence running into the 'escaped' Latynia, make contact, and bring her to Prism."
What do you even call it when someone fixates obsessively on a specific target and starts hallucinating delusions about them?
The Latynia I'd seen acted that way, but that wasn't the only problem she had.
"Lady Latynia... doesn't even glance at anything she's not interested in."
"Isn't that pretty normal?"
"Even normal people, no matter how little interest they have, wouldn't treat someone they've spent ten years with like they don't exist—or forget their name entirely. And there weren't any fights between them or anything. It's just that Lady Latynia has zero interest."
What the hell does that mean?
"So, Latynia fixates her attention on specific targets?"
"Exactly."
"Since when?"
"No idea. I heard she's been like that since she was really young. The court mage checked her out—no magic, spells, or curses—so they figured it was congenital."
Suspicious.
From what I'd seen, something was definitely possessing Latynia.
That court mage who claimed there was no magic, spell, or curse? He's the most suspicious one.
Not like I'm ever gonna meet the guy anyway.
"Thanks for letting me know."
"What're you gonna do about it?"
"What else? If there's a problem, you solve it."
"You?"
"Me."
Ruphus looked genuinely surprised, like he hadn't expected that from me.
I could guess how he'd seen me up until now.
I was about to wrap things up when I remembered one thing I hadn't asked.
"Oh yeah, you said I wasn't the first one she fixated on. What happened to those other guys?"
"The moment they tried to lay a hand on Lady Latynia..."
Ruphus clammed up after that.
What happened to them?
Under my prodding, he ran a finger across his throat and pointed at the ground.
The gesture said it all.
Once I'd made up my mind to act, there was no reason to hesitate.
But one thing was still missing, so I couldn't move yet.
And that's why I'd come here.
"Prism even has places like this."
Ji-ah looked around in admiration.
Since there was no lore tying her to combat stuff, it wasn't weird that she'd never been to the training ground before.
The reason I'd called her here was simple.
"Ji-ah."
"Yes?"
"You have the brooch I gave you?"
"Yes. I keep it right here."
Ji-ah pulled the brooch out from between her breasts.
...Where exactly do you store that thing?
"Mind giving it back?"
"Yes?!"
Ji-ah's face crumpled like the world had ended.
She didn't react at all until I took it from her hand.
The brooch felt strangely warm.
Her wandering gaze locked onto the brooch in my palm.
"D-did I... do something wrong...?"
"Huh? No, nothing like that. Just need it for an experiment."
"Ah... I see. I thought..."
Ji-ah let out a relieved breath.
"Shadow magic—you know how to use it, right? Give me a basic one."
"Yes...?"
Ji-ah froze solid.
Come to think of it, she had no idea I'd seen her use shadow magic.
"How did you... know about that...?"
Can't exactly say I stalked you 'cause you looked shady and caught you using it.
That'd make me sound like a total creep.
I mulled it over for a sec and decided to bluff.
"I know everything about you."
"Ah..."
My quick improv landed perfectly—her expression softened right up.
She's got such a wide range of expressions today.
Made me wanna push my luck one more time.
"Oh, and the dean knows too."
"Yes?!"
"Anyway, that's all sorted out nicely, so don't worry about it."
"Yes..."
It took a while for Ji-ah to calm down after all those emotional swings, but it was time well spent.
People with reactions that vivid aren't easy to come by.
"So, how about trying some shadow magic? Anything basic."
"Okay."
She closed her eyes like she was performing a ritual.
Still with her eyes shut, she took a step back.
"Huh?"
"What's wrong?"
"It always triggered like this before... Hold on?"
Ji-ah shut her eyes again and focused.
Moments later, her shadow started wriggling.
She stepped right onto it and sank in, vanishing like she'd fallen through.
[Got it.]
Her voice echoed from my shadow.
So this is shadow magic. Seeing it for real was way cooler than I'd imagined.
If I hadn't heard her voice, I never would've guessed anyone was inside there.
Now for the test...
I placed my hand on the shadow and ran through them methodically.
No need for Touch of Pleasure or Resonance.
Thousand Changes was irrelevant here.
Blockade got zero reaction.
The moment I triggered Fixation,
-Pang!
"Kyaaak!"
Ji-ah's magic shattered, and she tumbled out of the shadow.
Hmm. Fixation does the trick.
"Thanks, Ji-ah. That really helped."
"Y-yes... Um, your hand... Ahng!"
My palm was planted right on Ji-ah's breast.
No wonder it'd felt so soft.
I squeezed on reflex, and bliss hit me automatically.
"Ah, sorry—not on purpose."
"It's... okay..."
I offered the brooch back to her.
She stayed bowed, motionless.
"Here, take it back. Thanks again for the help today."
"Yes..."
She cradled the brooch in both hands like a treasure.
Still wouldn't look up, so I couldn't see her face.
Anyway, preparations were complete.
Time to see Latynia.
Getting Latynia alone was straightforward.
Right after the heterorace studies lecture ended, I just said, "Wanna talk?" She perked up and followed happily.
Not totally alone, though. Ruphus was probably lurking somewhere, keeping watch.
I'd given him a heads-up beforehand, so he shouldn't butt in or interfere.
...He shouldn't, right?
I led Latynia into a secluded spot.
Buildings blocked the view perfectly from outside—a prime hideaway.
Latynia trailed after me with her usual bubbly, clueless smile.
Once we were deep enough, I turned to face her.
"Dojun-ssi? What'd you need me for?"
"Got something to say."
My serious look sparked expectation in her eyes.
Sorry, but it wasn't gonna be that kind of talk.
I stepped slowly toward Latynia.
I could see the anticipation building in her, plain as day.
One more step forward. Stopped.
Close enough to touch if I reached out.
Her face had gone all dreamy, lost in her own little world.
"Latynia. It's been a good while since we met, hasn't it?"
"Yes..."
Objectively? A little over a month.
But facts like that didn't matter to her one bit.
"I think it's about time we clarified our relationship. Don't you?"
"Yes... you're right."
I reached out to her.
Cupped her soft cheek, slid my hand back to cradle her head.
Gave a light tug, pulling her against me.
She went limp, leaning into me as she gazed up.
Her hazy eyes stared right back—along with the faint, murky something floating inside them.
"No matter what I do, you won't hate me for it, right?"
"Y-yeshe..."
Just in case her memories stuck around after I dispelled whatever this magic-curse-thing was.
She might end up resenting me. Hating me.
Think I'd toyed with her pure feelings.
I'd done the bare minimum to check, but forgiveness? Probably a long shot.
Still, it had to be done.
I leaned down slowly.
Her face inches from mine.
She shut her eyes, expectant.
This, too—the last time.
I brought my lips to her ear.
"Sorry."
Whispered it. Then triggered Fixation.
At the same instant, I poured every ounce of will into my right hand: dispel the magic, the spell, the curse.
"Kyaaaaaaaah!!!"
Latynia let out a agonized scream and started thrashing wildly.
I wrapped my arm to pin her in place, pressing my hand firm against her head.
Dark blue smoke began seeping slowly from her scalp.
An eternity seemed to pass before she finally went limp.
The smoke from Latynia had stopped flowing.
Done.
If things had gone as I'd planned—as I'd hoped—then it worked.
"Ruphus! I know you're watching!"
He emerged from behind the building.
His face was etched with unease.
Mine probably looked the same.
"That it?"
"If it solved things like I think it did. Take your princess."
I scooped up her slumped form and handed her over.
Her expression in her faint told the story of the pain she'd endured.
My chest tightened.
Ruphus accepted her like she was fragile treasure.
"What now? Heading back to the Rasertia Kingdom?"
"Who knows... Probably up to Lady Latynia's will?"
"Yeah? If you do go, hit me up before you leave."
I'd like to see her face one last time.
I left it at that and turned away.
I felt Ruphus carrying Latynia off into the distance.
In the shadowed alley, only I remained—expression complicated.